When a friend invited me to attend his university ceremony I didn’t think twice.
He was being named New Buckingham University’s first ever chancellor – a huge achievement – and I was touched to be on the guest list.
It meant a bus to London, then a tram to Heathrow and a cab to Wycombe’s Swan Theatre, but some things are worth the trek.
I arrived with just minutes to spare before the ceremony started. And as I walked in, I saw a familiar face to my left. So familiar, it might have been a family member.
But no, it was Mary Berry.
And she was talking to Dame Judi Dench.
So far, so surreal. It felt like one of those dreams where random famous people pop up for no reason.
But it might all start to make sense when I tell you the pal being celebrated was Jay Blades.
Jay Blades is an example for us all
You maybe know him from BBC1’s The Repair Shop, the show which has made him a household name.
I met him before that, when Jay was new to telly with a role on Money For Nothing.
He visited our home and took away a couple of old objects (a pig trough and a saggy chair). He gave them to artisans, who transformed them and sold them on with the profits going to a charity of my choice.
At the time, Jay Blades wasn’t famous at all but I thought he was wonderful. My whole family did. There was just something special about him.
It was only after watching a documentary he made recently, called Learning To Read At 51, that I realised how special he truly was.
Jay was barely able to read for his whole life. I guess he covered it up with his heightened social skills.
The programme delved into his upbringing – not the easiest – by his mother on a council estate in Hackney.
He left school with no qualifications and a reputation for being a great fighter and not much else.
For anyone to be asked to be the inaugural chancellor of a university is an honour.
For Jay, it is a feat of self-belief and an illustration of the importance of never giving up.
Jay Blades wasn’t the only famous face
At the drinks reception afterwards, I spotted another famous face.
He was being crowded by Jay’s old pals taking selfies, so it was hard to see him at first.
But it’s hard to mistake the one and only Sir David Jason.
My heart skipped a beat.
On any given day, you can bet Only Fools And Horses on Sky on UK Gold is better than pretty much anything else is on offer, and I often find myself watching it with the boys.
I offered to take a picture for one man trying to contort his body for a selfie.
And as I looked at Del Boy through the phone camera lens, he raised an eyebrow and said: “I’ve been watching you already this morning”.
I did a comedy look over my shoulder before I realised he was speaking to me.
Turns out he’d been watching Homes Under The Hammer, and that knowledge will forever make my day.
Celebrity is a funny old concept. Jay Blades, Sir David and Dames Judi and Mary are undoubtedly famous, but none of that would matter if they weren’t good people.
As the saying goes though (and if it doesn’t, it should) good people attract good people.
And that’s why so many good people were there to celebrate with one of the very best.
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